Embassy Celebrates Bastille Day

The French embassy celebrated Bastille Day on July 14 with a program that included a public discourse, food and drink, and traditional bal-musette music played live to a listening audience.

Speaking to a crowd of about 2,000 mostly French attendees, François Delattre, Ambassador of France to the United States, praised the crowd’s lively disposition, saying that "I have never heard La Marseillaise sung with as much force" as during the playing of the French and U.S. national anthems which preceded his address.

Touching on the spirit of France’s national holiday, Amb. Delattre also paid tribute to the work of French citizens in the U.S. and around the world. "I know how much you, too, are ambassadors of France," he said.

Amb. Delattre thanked the several officials of the French government in attendance, including Frédéric Lefebvre, whose national office represents France’s citizens living in North America, French Senator Jean-Claude Lenoir, Deputy Christian Bataille, and European Deputy and former minister Alain Lamassoure.

The Ambassador ended his speech with a word on French-American relations. Describing the common values of democracy and human rights shared between the two countries, he called these "the best compass, and the best guides for action," in bilateral cooperation across all sectors.

To read the Ambassador’s speech from July 14, please click here [in French].

Amb. Delattre spoke to Washington’s diplomatic community as part of a July 11 event related to Bastille Day. To read the Ambassador’s speech from July 11, please click here.

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